When you hear the words Joining Hearts, the image most likely to pop up in your head is hundreds of people in bathing suits, standing around the Piedmont Park pool enjoying cocktails, as booming beats thunder in the background — all to raise thousands of dollars for AID Atlanta and Jerusalem House.

But Joining Hearts also holds events throughout the year to raise funds for these organizations, as well as its annual Wish List holiday party where guests bring toys for the children at Jerusalem House and gift cards for youths who are part of the teen program at AID Atlanta.

A wish list for the Wish List party is set up at Target stores and available online, said Patrick McCulley, board member of Joining Hearts.

“We’re not as well known for these,” McCulley says of the Wish List party.

It is always scheduled the week after Toy Party, an event organized by For the Kid in All of Us that attracts thousands of people each year and collects toys for more than 20 agencies.

The annual Wish List private party is being held Dec. 12 at the home of Tommy Brendiar, an original founder of Joining Hearts some 24 years ago. This year, however, the Joining Hearts board wanted to open the party up to even more people and is hosting a Wish List After Party at Amsterdam with DJ Mike Pope.

“We thought, ‘Let’s do something additional this year,’” McCulley said. “People are invited and can bring a toy or a gift card but really we just want people to come out and join us.”

Joining Hearts was founded by a group of friends in the mid-1980s to raise funds for people with HIV/AIDS. Since then, the organization has grown with its mission now to raise funds for housing for people with HIV/AIDS. To date, the organization has raised more than $1 million for AID Atlanta and Jerusalem House.

Top photo: Known for its annual summer party, Joining Hearts also holds a ‘Wish List’ party each year to gather toys for children at Jerusalem House and AID Atlanta. (Courtesy Joining Hearts)